Bud Selig has produced revenue-sharing and value-escalation. He deserves much credit. The mothers of this country have produced a never-ending supply of baseball customers. They deserve more.

Once upon a time — Sunday, actually — a grandfather accompanied his 8-year-old grandson to a major league baseball game. His granddaughter was there too, but she had a friend with her. If you are a 10-year-old girl, you cannot be seen in public at a baseball game with your grandpa and little brother without a friend along. It is the law.

The game was at Camden Yards and matched the Baltimore Orioles and Tampa Bay Rays. Grandpa was told he must root for the Orioles, only they are to be called the O's. It is the law.

There are 9 million worse places to spend a Sunday afternoon than at Camden Yards. The 37,000 or so who were also there seemed to feel the same way. Camden Yards has been around for 21 years, but features a nice mix of new and old. Baseball is a traditional game. Its stadiums should reflect that.

Grandpas and 8-year-old grandsons going to baseball games is traditional. So is grandpas, who also happen to be sportswriters, writing about it.

Grandson walks to the stadium dressed in black and orange, Orioles, er, O's colors. He carries his fielder's glove because you have to have your glove ready in case you get a foul ball and because you just got a Manny Machado baseball card and Manny Machado hits the ball way far and sometimes foul balls bounce away to somebody else if you don't have your glove on and then the kids at school laugh at you.

He doesn't walk so much as hop a few steps and then crouches into his batter's stance and takes a few imaginary swings. So we call him Casey, as in Casey at the Bat.

"What's that, Papa?"

"It's a famous poem about a baseball player."

"Did he play for the O's?"

"No, for Mudville."

"They aren't in the league."

There is no conceivable response.

We pass a person with a sign, asking for money.

"I feel sorry for homeless people," Casey says. "It would be sad not to have a home."

Grandpa is delighted with his level of social consciousness.

Casey's sister says, "I hear that you shouldn't give them money because sometimes they use it to buy cigars."

There is no conceivable response.

The conversation turns to the intricacies of baseball.